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Song Stories

“Glad All Over”

Dave Clark Five | 1964

With storm trooper stomps and an irrepressibly upbeat chorus, "Glad All Over" became the first major British Invasion hit in the U.S. by a band other than the Beatles. It was also the song that knocked "I Want to Hold Your Hand" off the top of the British hit parade. "I was going through my record collection, and I saw the title 'Glad All Over,'" remembered Dave Clark Five singer Mike Smith. "I couldn't remember what the song was like, but I thought it was a great title. So I sat down at my dad's piano and wrote 'Glad All Over.'"

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“Between the Wars”
Billy Bragg | 1985
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“Seven and Seven Is”
Love | 1966

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Song Stories

“Let My Love Open the Door”

Pete Townshend | 1980

A peppy, hopeful love song, "Let My Love Open the Door" became a U. S. Top Ten hit for Pete Townshend in 1980, anchored by the kind of repeating synthesizer figures that he'd used in some of the Who's recordings in the previous decade. Although Townshend brushed the song off as "just a ditty" in Rolling Stone shortly after its release, in 1996 he revealed it was about love of the holiest sort. "It's supposed to be about the power of God's love," he remarked. "That when you're in difficulty, whether it's major or minor, God's love is always there for you."

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